Today is Red Dress Day, a day to remember and honour missing and murdered Indigenous women, girls, and two-spirit people (MMIWG2S). This day was started over fifteen years ago and inspired by a Métis artist. Unfortunately, this day is still a necessary reminder.
Red Dress Day History
Jaime Black inspired Red Dress Day with her REDdress art installation, where she hung hundreds of red dresses in public spaces as a visual reminder of the staggering amounts of violence facing missing and murdered Indigenous women and girls. She chose the colour red after an Indigenous friend told her red is the only colour spirits can see. The red dresses are meant to help lost spirits find their way home to their loved ones.
Red dresses have become symbolic of the crisis. Red dress installations have popped up across Canada and it became known as Red Dress Day in 2010. It’s a day to honour and remember those we’ve lost, raise awareness of the crisis, and call on governments to take action.
The rates of gender-based violence are particularly high for Indigenous women, girls, and two-spirit community members. Indigenous women are four times more likely than non-Indigenous women to be victims of violence. There is also a history of these crimes not being investigated properly (or at all).
The National Inquiry into Missing and Murdered Indigenous Women and Girls
One huge moment of progress was a National Inquiry into the crisis at a federal level, something Indigenous communities and human rights groups had long been advocating for. The National Inquiry identified 231 calls to justice to eliminate the systemic causes of violence, but to date only 2 of those have been completed. There is still a lot of progress to be made, which is why Red Dress Day is so important.
Need ideas on how to commemorate this important day? We’ve got some ideas.
Wear red to express your solidarity with Indigenous communities.
Educate yourself on the ongoing crisis, ideally from Indigenous voices. There are many Indigenous organizations that are raising awareness and educating. You could also read the National Inquiry into Missing and Murdered Indigenous Women and Girls.
Attend an Event! The Ottawa Aboriginal Coalition is hosting a Red Dress Day gathering on May 5 at City Hall (110 Laurier Ave) featuring educational displays, commemorative activities, and art installations to foster healing and unity.
Through these collective actions, we can raise awareness, hold space, and create widespread societal change.
Resources
https://afn.ca/rights-justice/murdered-missing-indigenous-women-girls/
https://www.thecanadianencyclopedia.ca/en/article/red-dress-day
